OMG PMDD

It's hard to find the time for introspective thought when you're working three jobs.  It's even harder to come up with well-written introspective thought.  So here's a stream of consciousness about a commercial I just saw.

Does anyone know when premenstrual dysphoric disorder was added to the DSM?  It feels like an excuse for being a psycho-bitch once a month, or--more likely--a new way to sell birth control.  I used to have incredibly painful periods (until I stopped menstruating altogether), complete with violent mood swings, so I'm not trivializing anyone's monthly pain.  But now, I know a couple of girls who suddenly have PMDD after seeing the Yaz commercials.  I'm utterly confident that these chicks haven't been to either a gynecologist or psychiatrist, but that doesn't stop them from going through a werewolf-style transformation once a month.  On the other hand, if I could come up with an excuse for acting however I damn well pleased 25% of the time, I would... except for those pesky ethics I like so much.  Sadly, though, there's not a coalition of angry, superiority-ridden women with the power to get that excuse written into the DSM (or is there???).  Sorry, NOW.  (Just kidding.  I like NOW.  I liked when they picketed the local Hooters a few years ago.  Anyway...)

So, is it an excuse to sell more birth control?  Maybe.  It's getting harder and harder for minors to get birth control without their parents' consent... it's far easier to convince your parents that you need the pill to make you sane than to convince them that you need to fuck.  "But Mom, I'll be able to concentrate better in math class if I'm not getting cramps!"  But besides the under-18 set, it's pretty easy to get birth control most places.  Most places.  And that underline brings me to PMDD's most likely and useful social function: It legitimizes a controversial drug.  Women who would normally hate themselves for taking birth control, or who live in communities that would scorn them for doing so, can pop the pill without guilt.  More importantly, pharmaceuticals can peddle birth control in areas that normally wouldn't be receptive.  Hmm, now that I think about it, it's the same excuse that the teenagers are using, but with more lying to oneself.  But hey, anything to sell more drugs.  And to slow population growth.  Go ZPG!

By the way, I absolutely HATE the Yaz commercials.  I hope all three of those women contract syphilis, and that the med student gets chlamydia on top of it.